Managing multistate HR and payroll compliance for today’s remote workforce

A little more than three years ago, everything changed about the way we live and work.

One day, we were talking face-to-face with our friends and family. The next day, we were six feet apart. Masks quickly became a staple of our everyday lives. And the idea of going to restaurants, schools and stores suddenly became more of a fantasy than a reality.

Additionally, there was a massive shift in the way we work. The COVID-19 pandemic rattled everything we knew about our jobs – not only the location from which most of us worked, but also the way we communicated with coworkers, the use of technology to do our jobs, and many other aspects, including the way we attract, hire and retain employees.

These changes were presented as short-term realities at the time, although we now realize that many of these adjustments are here to stay – or, at the very least, they are going to stick around for longer than we originally expected.

While the idea of working remotely existed prior to the arrival of COVID-19, the pandemic certainly brought the concept front and center for many employers as it emerged as a national issue. It quickly became obvious that the way we work was changing and that companies were going to have to swiftly adapt to keep up.

The HR and payroll perspective

One of the most significant shakeups to the way we work has taken place within the human resources and payroll departments of companies, both large and small, throughout the U.S.

In the spring of 2020, organizations had to quickly figure out how to interview applicants without meeting them in person. As a result, HR was screening a pool of applicants from different states, including locations that in many cases had never been on their hiring radar previously.

Of course, multistate employment has always existed – particularly at larger companies with many locations – but starting three years ago, an even larger number of organizations found themselves discussing the possibility and practicality of remote work in other states. Companies began recruiting outside of their immediate geographic regions for positions that could be performed from an alternate location. Existing employees who could or were required to work from home, began setting up their offices and in some cases, changing their addresses. Needless to say, internal changes needed to be made to support this multi-location workforce.

The idea that an organization in Florida can simply hire a remote worker from California isn’t so simple. It’s easy to say, “You’ve got the job.” But it’s not so basic, from an HR benefits and payroll perspective, to quickly add an employee from across the country.